Apprentice seriously injured in workplace fall: company fined £20,000

Fall from height: serious injuries: £20,000 fine

Health and Safety Executive v Bespoke Bodies Ltd (2017) Liverpool magistrates’ court, July 14

Statutory reference: regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (MHSWR) and s.2 of the Health and Safety at Work, etc., Act 1974 (HSWA).

Bespoke Bodies Ltd, a coach fabricating company, has been fined following an incident in which an apprentice fell through a roof.

The facts

· In April 2016 a 25 year old apprentice was working at the company’s site in Warrington. He was cleaning valley gutters on a workshop roof.

· He stepped back onto a fragile skylight and fell 30 feet to the ground. He suffered three fractured ribs and a ruptured spleen.

· The company had not properly supervised work at height and had failed to identify the risks associated with working at height and on fragile surfaces.

The decision

The company was fined £20,000 plus £3300 costs under regulation 3 of MHSWR and s.2, HSWA.

An HSE inspector commented after the case that falls from height remain one of the most common causes of work related injuries and the risks of working at height are well known.